The List: 3 reasons to be excited for Arjan Bhullar vs. Anatoly Malykhin
Bhullar and Malykhin unify ONE Championship’s heavyweight title at ONE Friday Fights 22 on June 23 in Thailand.
One of the most anticipated heavyweight mixed martial arts fights of all time is finally happening next month.
After much rescheduling, ONE Heavyweight World Champion Arjan Bhullar (11-1) will lock horns with interim king Anatoly Malykhin (12-0) at ONE Friday Fights 22, which emanates from Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, on June 23.
There’s a laundry list of reasons combat sports fans are excited for this World Title unification bout, and we’ve chosen three to really get the hype started.
1. The undisputed heavyweight king will finally be decided
It’s been a long road to this point.
Bhullar and Malykhin’s heavyweight blockbuster has been booked on multiple occasions over the last 12 months, but unforeseen circumstances scuppered the fight each time.
“Singh” has been unable to fight since he earned the belt from inaugural heavyweight king Brandon “The Truth” Vera in 2021, due to a combination of injury and contractual issues.
In his absence, Malykhin has risen to the top of the stacked division. During his time in ONE Championship, the unbeaten Russian has earned three stoppage victories at heavyweight, including his win over Kirill Grishenko in February 2022 to claim the interim gold.
“Sladkiy” also relieved two-division ONE world champion Reinier de Ridder of his ONE light heavyweight world title last December to earn his second belt.
Despite his dominance, the question of who the true king of the heavyweights still persists – and that will be answered on June 23.
2. An incredible stylistic matchup
Bhullar and Malykhin are two supremely well-rounded heavyweight athletes.
“Singh” is a Commonwealth Games gold medallist in freestyle wrestling, and his skill set has pushed him to 11 professional victories.
India’s first MMA world champion showed that he could also throw hands when he took on Vera, however. His speed and power allowed him to outmaneuver the Filipino veteran when they met, and he’ll look to utilize both again in his upcoming fight.
Malykhin is also renowned for the wrestling skills he forged on the notoriously competitive and talent-laden Russian circuit. But with eight knockouts from his 12 MMA wins, the Russian superstar has shown that he is also dangerous when the fight remains standing.
Each man has the depth on the feet and on the ground to make their ONE heavyweight world title unification bout a war of attrition. But they also possess the power to finish it in one punch, too – so fans would be wise not to blink when these two meet.
3. There is some extra spice in this one
Though fans have had to endure multiple delays with this world title tussle, they haven’t been left without entertainment surrounding the two athletes involved.
An intriguing battle of words has played out between Malykhin and Bhullar over the last year.
“Sladkiy” has routinely called Bhullar a “chicken” and inferred that the reigning divisional king has been avoiding him.
And “Singh” hasn’t been short on fiery words, either, and has made it clear that he plans to expose the interim king when they square off in the ring.
How this one will go down is anyone’s guess. But one thing’s for sure – no love will be lost between these two behemoths when the dust settles at ONE Friday Fights 22.
